Search

Hypertension, also known as high or raised blood pressure, is a condition where there is persistently raised pressure in the blood vessels. More than 90% of cases are primary (essential) hypertension, defined as high blood pressure due to genetic factors and lifestyle. Based on this information, lifestyle changes—such as physical exercise, weight loss, reduced alcohol and salt intake—can substantially lower blood pressure and thereby decrease the risk of cardiovascular complications. Above all, an adequate control of blood pressure by pharmacological management significantly reduces microvascular and macrovascular complications as well. Lately, there has been a growing interest in conscious nutrition, and nature has been a great source of medicinal products (also known as natural remedies) for millennia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the most common hypotensive or antihypertensive minerals, macro- and micronutrients and herbs, since it is impossible to consider all of them. Furthermore, this review focuses only on nutrients and bioactive components that are antihypertensive with proved mechanism of action. Last but not least, the review summarizes the most important drug interactions of the aforementioned herbal remedies, for the sake of completeness.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder with cognitive impairment. Physical exercise has long been proven to be beneficial in the disorder. The present study was designed to examine the effect of voluntary exercise on spatial memory, imaging, and pathological abnormalities. Particular focus has been given to the role of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1)—an important cellular cytoprotectant in preserving mental acuity—using an aging rat model of dementia. Male and female Wistar rats were segregated into six groups—namely, (i) aged sedentary (control) females (ASF, n=8); (ii) aged sedentary (control) males (ASM, n=8); (iii) aged running females (ARF, n=8); (iv) aged running males (ARM, n=8); (v) young control females (YCF, n=8); and (vi) young control males (YCM, n=8). Rats in the ARF and ARM groups had free access to a standardized inbuilt running wheel during the 3-month evaluation period. Spatial memory was investigated using the Morris Water Test, imaging and pathological alterations were assessed using positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and histopathological examinations (H&E, Congo red staining), respectively, and HO-1 enzyme activity assays were also conducted. The outcomes suggest that voluntary physical exercise mitigates impaired spatial memory and neuropathological changes exhibited by the aging sedentary group, via elevated HO-1 activity, contributing to the antioxidant capacity in the aging brain.

Right-sided heart failure—often caused by elevated pulmonary arterial pressure—is a chronic and progressive condition with particularly high mortality rates. Recent studies and our current findings suggest that components of Wild garlic (Allium ursinum, AU) may play a role in reducing blood pressure, inhibiting angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), as well as improving right ventricle function in rabbit models with heart failure. We hypothesize that AU may mitigate cardiovascular damage caused by pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and has value in the supplementary treatment of the complications of the disease. In this present investigation, PAH was induced by a single dose of monocrotaline (MCT) injection in Sprague-Dawley rats, and animals were divided into 4 treatment groups as follows: I. healthy control animals (Control group); II. pulmonary hypertensive rats (PAH group); III. pulmonary hypertensive rats + daily sildenafil treatment (Sildenafil group); and IV. pulmonary hypertensive rats + Wild garlic liophylisate-enriched chow (WGLL group), for 8 weeks. Echocardiographic measurements were obtained on the 0 and 8 weeks with fundamental and Doppler imaging. Isolated working heart method was used to determinate cardiac functions ex vivo after thoracotomy on the 8th week. Histological analyses were carried out on excised lung samples, and Western blot technique was used to determine Phosphodiesterase type 5 enzyme (PDE5) expression in both myocardial and pulmonary tissues. Our data demonstrate that right ventricle function measured by echocardiography was deteriorated in PAH animals compared to controls, which was counteracted by AU treatment. Isolated working heart measurements showed elevated aortic flow in WGLL group compared to PAH animals. Histological analysis revealed dramatic increase in medial wall thickness of pulmonary arteries harvested from PAH animals, but arteries of animals in sildenafil- and WGLL-treated groups showed physiological status. Our results suggest that bioactive compounds in Allium ursinum could have beneficial effects in pulmonary hypertension.

Inclusion body myositis is a slowly progressive myopathy affecting predominantly the middle-aged and older patient population. It is a major form of the idiopathic inflammatory myopathies which are chronic systemic autoimmune diseases characterized by symmetrical proximal muscle weakness. Unfortunately, there is no effective therapy yet; however, the early diagnosis is essential to provide treatment options which may significantly slow the progression of the disease. In our case-based clinicopathological study the importance of the close collaboration between the clinician and the neuropathologist is emphasised.

Inclusion body myositis is a rare, late-onset myopathy. Both inflammatory and myodegenerative features play an important role in their pathogenesis. Overlapping clinicopathological entities are the familial inclusion body myopathies with or without dementia. These myopathies share several clinical and pathological features with the sporadic inflammatory disease. Therefore, better understanding of the genetic basis and pathomechanism of these rare familial cases may advance our knowledge and enable more effective treatment options in sporadic IBM, which is currently considered a relentlessly progressive incurable disease.

Among diabetes patients, ophthalmological complications are very frequent. High blood glucose and (consequential) ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury contribute significantly to the severity of retinopathies. Diabetic retinopathy is among the leading causes of blindness. Our study demonstrates the effect of sour cherry seed extract (SCSE) on blood glucose and function of the retina with electroretinography (ERG) in a diabetic setting with or without ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in Zucker Diabetic Fatty (ZDF) rats. Our results prove that the SCSE has a retinoprotective effect in diabetic rats: according to ERG measurements, SCSE treatment mitigated the retinal function-damaging effect of diabetes, and proved to be protective in the diabetic eye against ischemia-reperfusion injuries of the retina. Outcomes suggest that the protective effects of SCSE may occur through several pathways, including HO-1 dependent mechanisms. The observation that SCSE treatment decreases blood glucose is also novel. These findings offer the possibility for development of novel therapeutic strategies utilizing this emerging functional food, in particular in the prevention of conditions resulting from high blood glucose or I/R injury, such as deterioration of retinal microcirculation.