Pharmakon

19/01/2023

25/07/2020

- Before Ethan Loyola reached his first birthday, it was clear that something was wrong with his gut. Around the age of one, Ethan lost the words he’d started to say and stopped making eye contact. Soon after that, he received a diagnosis: autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

- Scientists at Arizona State University were looking for children with autism to try an experimental treatment called microbiota transfer therapy, which would be used to recolonize the children’s guts with bacteria from donors who were not on the autistic spectrum. Ethan’s parents enrolled him in the study.

- Researchers are revealing that in addition to aiding digestion, gut bacteria also manufacture bioactive compounds that help to orchestrate brain function and social development.

- Studies show that children with ASD often have a mix of gut microbes that is distinct from that in children without the condition. And in lab animals, autism-like symptoms arise when normal species of gut bacteria are absent.

- Studies have showed that when gut bacteria help to digest food, they generate a host of by-products that can affect thinking and behaviour. Clostridia bacterial pathogens, for instance, generate propionic acid in the gut — a short-chain fatty acid known to disrupt the production of neurotransmitters. Propionic acid also causes autism-like symptoms in rats, such as repetitive interests, unusual motor movements and atypical social interactions.

- For Ethan, after the microbiome transfer, his diarrhoea and cramping disappeared in months. But most dramatic was his new interest in people. He began waking up with a smile, crowing, “Good morning!” He also started asking questions, such as ‘why is the sky blue and the clouds white?’ something he had not done before, his family says. In social-skills tests, Ethan, who is now 12, scores in the same range as children who are not on the autistic spectrum.

- Did Ethan make these strides because his crippling stomach pain went away? Or have the new microbes truly changed the way his brain works? No one knows for sure. But Ethan’s family welcomes the research. “The study was the tipping point,” his mother says. “It was completely life altering.”

15/07/2020

- People who use proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) may be more likely to get COVID-19, researchers say.

- In light of this finding, physicians should consider which patients truly need these powerful acid-lowering drugs.

- Although studies have not borne out many of the other concerns raised about adverse reactions, they have shown that the drugs increase the risk for enteric infections, including infections by SARS-CoV-1, a virus that is related to the COVID-19 virus, SARS-CoV-2.

- SARS-CoV-2 uses the angiotensin-converting enzyme–2 receptor to invade enterocytes.

- They theorized that an increase in stomach pH above 3 as a result of use of PPIs might allow the virus to enter the GI tract more easily, leading to enteritis, colitis, and systemic spread to other organs, including the lungs. There is a reason we have acid in our stomachs.

15/07/2020

- A prospective analysis of 47,911 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, 5,035 of which had prostate cancer, observed a strong inverse association between coffee consumption and risk of advanced prostate cancer.
- Men who consumed 6 or more cups of coffee per day had a 60% lower risk of lethal and advanced prostate cancer than non-drinkers. The association appeared to be related to the non-caffeine components of coffee, as the association with lethal cancer was similar for regular and decaffeinated coffee
- A 2014 meta-analysis suggested that coffee consumption has a protective effect on prostate cancer, concluding that coffee consumption may be inversely associated with the risk of fatal prostate cancer, but showed no clear evidence of an association with its incidence

18/06/2020

- In a preprint study , Ozonized Saline Solution (O3SS) was used as a complementary therapy in adult patients with mild to severe COVID-19.

- Twenty-five adult patients who were hospitalized with mild to severe COVID-19 symptoms. Patients were allocated to receive standard care (SC) that included 200-400 mg hydroxychloroquine twice daily for 5-7 days plus Tocilizumab 400 mg twice daily for 5 days, low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) and 40 mg-60 mg metil-prednisone plus O3SS, 200 mL, 3-5 µg/mL daily for 10 days.

- The results of treatment with O3SS were an improvement of clinical symptoms and a decrease in mortality.None of the patients treated with standard care (SC) + O3SS died.

- Improvements in symptoms such as dyspnea, weakness, and reduction in body temperature were observed and corresponded with an improvement of laboratory finding including D-dimer, fibrinogen, LDH, and CRP.

- No side effects from the O3SS treatment were observed.

- To sum up , COVID-19 patients with mild to severe symptoms who received intravenous O3SS as a complementary therapy demonstrated improved clinical symptoms, improved laboratory values and a reduction in mortality.

17/06/2020

- Reports of a mysterious syndrome that may be associated with COVID-19 in children.

- In New York, some children aged 2-15 years have experienced unusual inflammatory symptoms associated with toxic shock or Kawasaki disease.

- Kawasaki disease is an acute febrile illness characterized by vasculitis (inflammation of the blood vessels )of the medium-sized arteries, including coronary arteries.

- Same findings have been seen in children across Europe.

-No one sign or symptom can be used to identify the children who are affected, and they may or may not test positive for COVID-19. At this time, the association between coronavirus infection and this hyperinflammatory state in children is not yet considered definitive .

- Doctors have stated that the condition does not appear to be a result of the virus attacking the lungs.

- Although shock is rarely associated with Kawasaki disease, many children with the inflammatory syndrome potentially related to coronavirus infection have low blood pressure, and their blood is unable to effectively support the body's organs.

- Thus far, children appear to be affected less frequently by COVID-19, and those who are affected typically have milder symptoms. This is why the symptoms resembling Kawasaki disease have garnered so much attention.

17/06/2020

- أعلن باحثون من جامعة أكسفورد أن الديكساميثازون الستيرويد الغير مكلف والمستخدم على نطاق واسع اسهم فى خفض معدلات الوفيات بنحو الثلث لمرضى COVID-19 المصابين بأمراض شديدة في تجربة سريرية أجريت في المملكة المتحدة.

- يمكن أن يساعد ديكساميثازون بعض مرضى فيروس كورونا الموجودين على أجهزة التنفس الصناعي فقط.

- قال أحد الباحثين "إنه إنجاز كبير". وقال إن ديكساميثازون كان "الدواء الوحيد الذي ظهر حتى الآن أنه يخفض معدل الوفيات - ويقلله بشكل ملحوظ".

- حيث قارنت التجربة نتائج حوالي 2100 مريض تم تعيينهم عشوائيًا للحصول على الديكساميثازون مقارنة بحوالي 4300 مريض لم يحصلوا عليهز

- يذكر ان التأثيرات المضادة للالتهابات والمثبطات المناعية للديكساميثازون هي أكثر فعالية من الكورتيزول بنحو 30 مرة.و يعمل عن طريق تثبيط الخلايا المسئولة عن الالتهاب .

07/06/2020

- هناك أدلة متنامية على أن حالة فيتامين د قد تكون ذات صلة بخطر الإصابة بعدوى COVID-19 وشدة المرض.
- فيتامين د مهم لتوطين المناعة ويعزز وظيفة المناعة ضد الأمراض الفيروسية و له تأثير معدل للجهاز المناعي ويمكن أن يقلل الالتهاب ، وقد يكون هذا مرتبطًا باستجابة الجهاز التنفسي أثناء COVID-19 وعاصفة السيتوكين التي تم إثباتها.
- هناك دراسات مخبرية (زراعة الخلايا) للخلايا التنفسية توثق بعض هذه الآثار من فيتامين د.
- و في دراسة رصدية من ثلاثة مستشفيات في جنوب آسيا ، كان انتشار نقص فيتامين د أعلى بكثير بين أولئك الذين يعانون من مرض COVID الحاد مقارنة مع أولئك الذين يعانون من مرض خفيف.
- تبين أن مكملات فيتامين د ارتبطت بانخفاض كبير في التهابات الجهاز التنفسي .
- لذا فإن الأدلة أصبحت مقنعة للغاية. من المهم أن نشجع مرضانا على أن يكونوا في الهواء الطلق ونشطين جسديًا ، مع الحفاظ على التباعد الاجتماعي. سيؤدي هذا إلى زيادة توليف فيتامين د في الجلد ، فقط من التعرض لأشعة الشمس العرضية.
- بالنسبة للمرضى غير القادرين على التواجد في الهواء الطلق والذين لديهم أيضًا القليل من المدخول الغذائي من فيتامين د ، فمن المعقول جدًا التفكير في مكمل فيتامين د. - - - - مهم :الحصة الغذائية الموصى بها لفيتامين D هي 600-800 وحدة دولية / يوميًا ، ولكن خلال هذه الفترة ، سيكون الفيتامينات المتعددة أو المكملات الغذائية التي تحتوي على 1000-2000 وحدة دولية / يوميًا من فيتامين د ز