مجله دانشگاه علوم پزشکی بابل
سال هفدهم شماره 7 (پیاپی 94، تیر 1394)

Recurrent herpes labialis is a common infection of the mouth area, caused by herpes simplex virus. This infection appears in the mucus or lip skin and is commonly known as oral herpes. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of Mellisan gel and acyclovir 5% cream in the improvement of recurrent herpes labialis. This double-blind clinical trial was conducted on 60 patients (14 men and 46 women), with the average age of 23.8 years (minimum of 20 and maximum of 32 years) and a prior history of recurrent herpes labialis three times a year. The previously-coded medicines were randomly distributed among patients. The subjects were asked to apply the cream or gel locally on the infected region three times a day, according to the manufacturer's instructions. All patients were examined within one, two, four and seven days after using the cream or gel to determine the changes in pain intensity, size of the ulcer, inflammation and recovery time. IRCT: 13870819144281. Mellisan gel and acyclovir cream were not significantly different in reducing the size of the ulcer, inflammation or the associated side-effects. Mellisan gel was accompanied by a significant reduction in pain intensity in patients on the second and fourth days of the examination (p=0.0001 and p=0.02, respectively). Moreover, on the second day, there was a significant difference in recovery (p=0.001). The results of this study suggested that Mellisan gel is more effective than acyclovir cream in terms of pain reduction and recovery, whereas no significant difference was observed regarding the size of the ulcer or inflammation. Also, the administration of Mellisan gel and acyclovir cream was associated with no side-effects.

Genu varumis a risk factor for the knee osteoarthritis onset. Given the role of exhaustion on the physical condition, understanding physical state fluctuationsin people with genu varum, will give us a good insight for prevention of knee osteoarthritis. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of exhaustive fatigue on body state fluctuations of men with genu varumand normal knees. This quasi-experimentalstudy was performed on 40 healthy male students, including 20 with genu varumand 20 with normal knees (with the average q angle of 25.5±8.0 and 97.8±86.0, respectively). Genu varumdeformitywasmeasured using a caliper and goniometer. Bodyfluctuations were recorded using the force measuring diagram,and Strand modified protocol was used to inducefatigue. There was no significant difference between the two groups after exhaustion in terms of anterior-posterior stability, but there was a significant decrease in medial-lateral stability after exhaustion (genu varum 86.296 mm/sec and normal knee 38.200 mm/sec, pressurecenter shifting,respectively);comparinggenu varumto the normal knee, thesechanges were significant (p=0.04). Interior-exterior stability in both groups,10 minutes after exhaustion was fully recovered. Inside displacementof the line of gravityin genu varumsuffererscan lead to increased volatility of the lateral posture, and since genu varumdeformity causes internal rotation of the leg and turns it into pronation of the subtalar joint inthe weight-bearing position,therefore, these changes in footstructures cancause leg function alterationin control of the internal-external (lateral) balance.

Tricyclazoleis a popularTriazole pesticide used in agriculture to control rice blast disease.Due to thehigh consumption and stability of tricyclazole, as well as the digestive, nervous and hepaticdisorders it may cause, this study aimed to investigate the effects of tricyclazole on hepatic enzyme changes and tissue damagein the fetus of laboratory mice.

Forthis experimental study, 30 mice (10 male, 20 female) with the age range of 10-12 weeks were purchased from Pasteur Institute, Northern branch, Iran. After mating and confirmation of pregnancy usinga vaginal plaque,the mice were randomly divided into three groups of control (N=6), experiment I(N=7) and experiment II (N=7). In the experimental groups, the mice received tricyclazole via intraperitoneal injectionat doses of 0.5 and1.5 mg/kg,respectively, whilethe control group received no toxins. All the animals were preservedunderoptimum conditions, and at day 17 of gestation, they were killed,and the fetuseswere removed from the body of the mothers. Sampling of hepatic tissues was performedto count fetal hepatocytes andevaluate tissuedamage. In addition, enzymelevels of Alanine aminotransferase (ALT), Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and Alkaline phosphatase(ALP)were measured via the colorimetric method using theenzyme kit madeby Cayman company.

In this study, microscopic evaluationsshowed a significant increase in the number of hepatocytes inexperimental group I (21.35 ± 0.85) and experimental group II (23.1±1.16) compared to the control group (16.9 ± 1.2)(P<0.05). Moreover, levels of ALTand AST were higher in the experimental groupscompared to the control group, whilethe level of ALP was observed to decrease in both groups (p<0.05).According to histopathological studies, concentrations of tricyclazole in the liver could lead to necrosis, inflammatory cell infiltration, hyperplasia, watery degeneration of hepatocytes and severe hepatomegaly.

According to the results of this study,enzymatic changes and hepatic tissue damage aredose-dependent processes, and tricyclazole could irreversibly disrupt the metabolic systemof the body.

Clove contains large proportion of a phenolic compound called eugenol, which has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of hydro-alcoholic clove extract on inflammation and pain response in mice. In this experimental study, 48 male mice were classified into six groups of control (saline), positive control (dexamethasone) and treatment (receiving 42, 85, 170 and 340 mg/kg of clove extract) to investigate the effects of clove extract on inflammation. To evaluate pain perception, 160 mice were categorized into 4 groups, divided into 5 subgroups including the control (saline), positive control (morphine), recipients of 200 mg/kg clove extract, recipients of 500 mg/kg of extract, and recipients of 200 mg/kg of combined clove extract and naloxone (4 mg/kg). To assess pain response, the hot plate test was performed on each subgroup at 5, 15, 30 and 60 minutes after the injection of the herbal extract. In addition, two hours after the injection of 0.03 ml xylene into the back of the right ears of the mice, the sections obtained from both ears (7 mm) were compared in terms of weight. In the inflammation test, the most significant difference in the ear sections was observed between the control group and recipients of 42 mg/kg of extract (36±5.1 and 33±5.3 µg, respectively), while the least significant difference was observed at doses of 180 and 340 mg/kg (21±2.1 and 17 ±1.5 µg, respectively). In the hot plate test on the treatment groups, dose of 500 mg/kg caused the highest pain delay 15 minutes before the test, while the lowest delay was observed in the recipients of combined naloxone and clove extract (200 mg/kg) 5 minutes before the test (18.91±1.53 and 8.71±1.04 seconds, respectively). According to the results of this study, hydro-alcoholic clove extract could have significant anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects on mice.

Chamomile has several analgesic properties, while the mechanism of these effects in interaction with male sex hormones compared tofemales are not well known. This study aimedto evaluate the analgesic effects of hydro-alcoholic extract of chamomile in male mice, and two phases of femalesexual cycle (diestrus and proestrus) in the presence or absence of estrogen receptors. In this experimental study, adult mice of both genders(weight: 27±3 g) were divided into four groups of control, chamomile recipients (30 or 50 mg/kg), tamoxifen recipients (0.5 or 1 mg/kg), and recipients of combined tamoxifen (1 mg/kg) and chamomile (30 or 50 mg/kg). Drugs were administeredintraperitoneally in one milligram per a kilogram of the body weight, and formalin test was used to induce acute and chronic pain. In addition, cumulative length of foot licking was calculatedin seconds as theindicator of pain perception. In male mice,chamomile extract (30mg/kg) reduced acute pain (53±2, p<0.01)and chronic pain (71±2, p<0.001), and dosage of 50 mg/kgcould reduce acutepain (41±1, p<0.001) and chronic pain (73±2, p<0.001). In diestrus and proestrusfemales, chamomile extract could relieve acute pain at 50 mg/kg (42±2, p<0.05 and 39±1, p<0.05, respectively). As for the chronicphase of pain, chamomile extract (30 mg/kg) was effective in diestrus (72±1, p<0.01) and proestrus (80±2, p<0.001) female mice, whileit could reduce chronic pain at 50 mg/kgindiestrus (59±1, p<0.001) and proestrus (62±2, p<0.001) females. In male mice, the analgesic effects of the extract were more significant.In addition, tamoxifen (1mg/kg)reduced chronic pain in diestrus (81±3, p<0.05) and proestrus (92±2, p<0.05) female mice. In male mice,combination of chamomile (30 mg/kg) and tamoxifen (1mg/kg) decreased acutepain(43±3, p<0.05), andcombination of chamomile (50 mg/kg)and tamoxifen (1mg/kg) reduced acute pain (29±1, p<0.05) and chronic pain (41±2, p<0.01) in male mice. Moreover, the drug combination reduced acutepain (21±1, p<0.001) and chronic pain (44±3, p<0.01)in diestrus females, as well as proestrus ones(19±2, p<0.001) (43±3, p<0.001). According to the results of this study, analgesic effects of chamomile extract are gender-dependent,and these effects are more significant in male mice.Increased analgesic effectsof combinedchamomile and tamoxifen couldbe due to the interaction between estrogenreceptorsand analgesic agents of chamomil.

Ginger is widely used by pregnant women and nursing mothers as a remedy for nausea and vomiting. This study aimed to investigate the effects of the alcoholic extract of ginger on serum levels of estrogen, progesterone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH) and ovarian follicles during pregnancy and lactation in the adult, female offspring of rats. This experimental study was conducted on 72 adult female rats, which were divided into 9 groups of 8, including the control groups, and recipients of 200, 100, 50 mg/kg of ginger alcoholic extract (perinatal and neonatal). Drug administration was performed via oral gavage, and by the end of infancy, the female offspring of each group were separated. At puberty, 8 animals were randomly selected from each group, and after blood sampling, serum levels of estrogen, progesterone, FSH and LH were measured. In addition, the number of follicles and yellow bodies (corpus luteum) were determined after the removal of ovaries. In comparison with the control groups, ginger caused a significant increase in the levels of estrogen (93.36±5.78), progesterone (4.52±0.45), FSH (0.90±0.05) and LH (0.79±0.08) in the experimental groups. Moreover, there was a significant increase in the number of follicles (6.40±0.33) and yellow bodies (7.00±1.41) in all the experimental groups (p≤0.05). According to the results of this study, consumption of ginger during pregnancy and lactation could increase the serum levels of estrogen, progesterone, FSH and LH, as well as the number of ovarian follicles, in the female offspring of rats.