Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Research
Volume:7 Issue: 1, Mar 2021

Poisons are chemical substances that produce harmful effects on the body. About 0.3 million people die annually from poisoning. Poisons are produced by animals, plants, microorganisms, and food contamination. Poisoning is a global public health problem, especially in children and teenagers and healthcare providers ought to provide protocols for its management. 

The main aim of this study was to document the mode, knowledge of antidotes, and management of poisoning by healthcare providers in selected community pharmacies and hospitals in Lagos state.

This study was a descriptive cross-sectional study. The study data were collected using questionnaires administered to 112 providers in selected community pharmacies and hospitals in Lagos state. The obtained data were collated and analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results were presented as frequency tables and charts.

A response rate of 85.7% was achieved. The most common mode of poisoning was accidental (89% and 68% among pharmacists and physicians, respectively) and the highest incidence was among children 0-5 years old (41.5% and 48.3% among pharmacists and physicians, respectively). Management was mainly via gastric decontamination with activated charcoal in pharmacies and supportive care in the hospitals. Knowledge and availability of antidotes and management of poisoning were poor.

Management of poisoning was generally inadequate and the prominence of a poison control center was recognized. The establishment of poison control centers in healthcare facilities and the organization of updated lectures for healthcare providers will go a long way to improving poisoning management in the state.

The Deming model is an effective method for comprehensive quality management.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of inclusive quality management on the educational accreditation results of the educational hospitals in the Mazandaran Province, Iran.

This interventional study was conducted in 5 hospitals. In this study, the Deming cycle validation model was employed. This model, which is based on the checklist for the educational centers of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, has 91 benchmarks for 81 standards. Descriptive statistical methods (Wilcoxon and Friedman nonparametric tests) were used to analyze the data.

A significant difference was observed among the accreditation scores of the hospitals before and after the intervention (P<0.05). The accreditation score obtained by the educational centers improved by 41.1, 37, 15.7, 53.2, and 49.2 units. Besides, the intervention outcomes in all areas of accreditation, except facilities management, space, facilities, equipment, and resources, were significantly different.

The use of the Deming cycle has proved effective in performing the educational accreditation of the centers, which can be achieved with continuous and proper implementation. This study can help improve the standards of education of the educational centers.

Multi drug resistance (MDR) is known to defeat most chemotherapies as one of the main anticancer strategies. The role of overexpression or overactivation of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters, especially P-glycoprotein (P-gp), in the development of chemotherapy has long been demonstrated. Salinispora is a marine actinomycete genus known for the production of novel bioactive metabolites.

In this study, the potential of Salinispora derived metabolites as inhibitor of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transports have been investigated using in-silico approaches.

Physicochemical, pharmacokinetic and drug likeness of the Salinispora derived metabolites have been analyzed using SwissADME server. This was accompanied by the employment of docking strategy to evaluate anti-MDR potential of the metabolites using P-gp, Breast Cancer Resistance Protein (BCRP) and Multidrug Resistance Protein 1 (MRP-1) as target proteins. 

Nineteen metabolites were found to have demonstrated appropriate physicochemical, pharmacokinetic, and drug-likeness properties and were involved in the docking studies. Based on docking studies, saliniquinones, cyclomarazine, and cyanosporoside A demonstrated ABC transporters inhibitory potential.

Our results suggest that further in vivo and in vitro studies on anti-MDR effects of Salinispora-derived metabolites are warranted.

It is believed that the consumption of an adequate amount of live lactic acid bacteria (as probiotic) may improve the health of the host. Many strains of lactic acid bacteria are generally considered to be safe. However, some strains have shown some adverse effects.

This study aimed to investigate the safety of a new strain of Lactobacillus pentosus (IBRC=11143) in Wistar rats.

In this experimental study, male and female Wistar rats (n=6) were used. A subacute toxicity study (for 28 days) was conducted by oral administration of Lactobacillus pentosus to the animals. In each sex, one group received saline, and the other two groups received the bacteria at doses of 1×108 and 1×109 Colony-Forming Units (CFU)/rat.

No significant alteration in the liver and kidney tissues was seen. However, in both sexes, there were significant differences in urea and creatinine levels between the control and the experimental groups. Some blood parameters (Lymphocyte, red blood cell, hematocrit, and hemoglobin) also showed significant changes in the groups that received the bacteria. Moreover, a significant increase in alkaline phosphatase level was observed in male rats.

The results indicate that Lactobacillus pentosus (11143) is not entirely safe like other Lactobacillus strains. Therefore, the Lactobacillus pentosus (11143) strain may not be the right choice as a probiotic for human consumption.

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions and a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. 

The present study aimed to evaluate the anticonvulsant activity of the petroleum ether extract of the root of Anacyclus pyrethrum on pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-induced seizure model in Wistar rats.

The composition of the petroleum ether extract of A. pyrethrum was first analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Subsequently, the anticonvulsant activities of these extracts (70 and 140 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection) were evaluated on PTZ-induced seizures in rats. The protection rate against induced seizures, latency, and duration of seizures, as well as neurological symptoms, were assessed and compared to those protected by phenobarbital.

GC/MS analysis of the petroleum ether extract showed that the main components were octadecadienoic acid, hexadecanoic acid, diheptylcyclopropene, naphthalene, and methyl stearate. The extract (70 and 140 mg/kg) was found to provide significant protection against PTZ-induced seizures. Moreover, compared to the negative control, the extracts increased the latency of induced-convulsion and reduced the duration of epilepsy. Interestingly, the extracts showed a reduction in neurological symptoms and the severity of seizures compared to the negative control. All of these outcomes manifested in a dose-dependent manner.

The petroleum ether extract of A. pyrethrum may produce anticonvulsant effects by reducing the duration of seizures and delaying the latency of seizures induced by PTZ.

In this report, we present a 29-year-old man who experienced EM five days after using sildenafil and tramadol. Based on clinical examination and history, the diagnosis of EM was made confirmed via skin biopsy, which found intra-epidermal bulla filled by fibrinous exudate, some mononuclear cells, and a few eosinophils. The spongiotic epidermis showed lichenoid interface dermatitis, eosinophilic spongiosis, and necrolysis, consistent with EM diagnosis. Fluocinolone, 0.025% ointment, was prescribed for the patient, and the lesions healed after two weeks of treatment.

Crataegus spp. (Hawthorn) are used for horticultural and medicinal purposes.

In the present study, the genetic relationships among the five Iranian Crataegus species were evaluated by Inter Simple Sequence Repeats (ISSR) molecular marker.

PCR reactions were performed using six primers (811, 827, 834, 845, 856, and 868) and genetic similarity was calculated based on Jacquard’s similarity coefficient.

Six primers generated 79 products in total, of which 71 were polymorphic (89.9%), with an average of 13.1 bands per primer. The percentage of polymorphic bands ranged from 77 to 100. Primer 856 produced the highest number of bands, while the lowest was generated by primer 845. The Jacquard’s similarity coefficient, derived from ISSR marker analysis, ranged from 0.164 to 0.337, indicating high genetic variation among Crataegus species in Iran.

This study provides important data for identifying species relationships and helps develop plant breeding strategies to improve the medicinal properties of this genus in the future.