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Unani has a tremendous wealth of medically therapeutic ingredients, which provide an incredible potential as a stand-alone and/or adjuvant treatment like cancer for a range of conditions. Globally, with a significant proportion of breast cancer, the rate of cancer and cancer-related deaths is increasingly growing. Many existing breast cancer treatment methods are usually ineffective, but time-tested Unani drugs can be scrutinized for their new properties, including anti-cancer activity. In this attempt, we have studied the phytochemical, anti-oxidant and anti-cancer activity of human breast adenocarcinoma called MCF-7 cell line, which was obtained from NCCS Pune and performed experiments for may be the first time. MCF-7 cell line was treated with four separate Unani formulation (UF) were made into three solvents like Aqueous, Hydroethanol and Methanol extracts. Extracts of UF3 and UF4 have shown the high antioxidant efficiency of three separate tests like DPPH, ABTS and FRAP. Anticancer activity of various Unani formulation extracts at various doses has been assessed and the importance of IC50 has been determined. Hydro-ethanolic UF1, UF3 and UF5 extracts demonstrate better anti-cancer properties (IC50 < 100 μg ml-1), accompanied by aqueous UF4 extracts; other extracts have high IC50 values (i.e. > 1,000 μg ml-1). These Unani system of medicine have the ability to create new breast cancer therapies. Additional verification of the medicinal value should be conducted in so many other cell lines and eventually in preclinical models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Omega (ω)-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are dietary compounds able to attenuate insulin resistance. Anyway, the precise actions of ω-3PUFAs in skeletal muscle are overlooked. We hypothesized that PUFAs, modulating mitochondrial function and efficiency, would ameliorate pro-inflammatory and pro-oxidant signs of nutritionally induced obesity. Study Design: To this aim, rats were fed a control diet (CD) or isocaloric high fat diets containing either ω-3 PUFA (FD) or lard (LD) for 6 weeks. Results: FD rats showed lower weight, lipid gain and energy efficiency compared to LD-fed animals, showing higher energy expenditure and O2 consumption/CO2 production. Serum lipid profile and pro-inflammatory parameters in FD-fed animals were reduced compared to LD. Accordingly, FD rats exhibited a higher glucose tolerance revealed by an improved glucose and insulin tolerance tests compared to LD, accompanied by a restoration of insulin signalling in skeletal muscle. PUFAs increased lipid oxidation and reduced energy efficiency in subsarcolemmal mitochondria, and increase AMPK activation, reducing both endoplasmic reticulum and oxidative stress. Increased mitochondrial respiration was related to an increased mitochondriogenesis in FD skeletal muscle, as shown by the increase in PGC1-α and -β. Conclusions: our data strengthened the association of high dietary ω3-PUFA intake with reduced mitochondrial energy efficiency in the skeletal muscle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditionally, the distribution of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis genotypes in India has been characterized by widespread prevalence of ancestral lineages (TbD1+ strains and variants) in the south and the modern forms (TbD1- CAS and variants) predominating in the north of India. The pattern was, however, not clearly known in the south-central region such as Hyderabad and the rest of the state of Andhra Pradesh where the prevalence of both tuberculosis (TB) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is one of the highest in the country; this area has been the hotspot of TB vaccine trials. Spoligotyping of 101 clinical isolates obtained from Hyderabad and rural Andhra Pradesh confirmed the occurrence of major genogroups such as the ancestral (or the TbD1+ type or the East African Indian (EAI) type), the Central Asian (CAS) or Delhi type and the Beijing lineage in Andhra Pradesh. Sixty five different spoligotype patterns were observed for the isolates included in this study; these were further analyzed based on specific genetic signatures/mutations. It was found that the major genogroups, CAS and "ancestral," were almost equally prevalent in our collection but followed a north-south compartmentalization as was also reported previously. However, we observed a significant presence of MANU lineage in south Andhra Pradesh, which was earlier reported to be overwhelmingly present in Mumbai. This study portrays genotypic diversity of M. tuberculosis from the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and provides a much needed snapshot of the strain diversity that will be helpful in devising effective TB control programs in this part of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]