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Background & Objective: Capparis spinosa is a plant belonging to the genus Capari which is important for medicinal purposes. It is also known as a multipurpose plant in Persian medicine. In this study, we searched for natural active ingredients in mouthwash for immunocompromised patients and examined the antifungal plus antibacterial properties of the hydroalcoholic extract of the root of the Capparis plant against Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) PTCC 1683 and Candida albicans (C. albicans) ATCC-10231 was investigated. Materials & Methods: Ethanol extracts of plant roots were extracted by the percolation method. The diameter of the growth inhibition zone of C. albicans and S. mutans extracts was measured using the well plate method. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were calculated for bacterial and fungal strains. In addition, the minimum sterilization concentration (MBC) and minimum sterilization concentration (MFC) of the extract were investigated using the broth microdilution method. The results were compared with an antibacterial and antifungal drug of 0.2% chlorhexidine nystatin. Results: The results for both pathogens revealed that the diameter of the growth inhibition zone increased with elevation of the extract concentration. The MIC and MBC of S. mutans extract were 62.5 and 62.5 mg/ml, compared to 0.39 and 0.39 mg/ml for chlorhexidine. The MIC and MFC of the plant against the fungus C. albicans were 7.812 and 31.25 mg/ml, compared to 0.25 and 1.25 μg/ml for nystatin. Conclusion: The ethanol extract of the Caparis plant had an antifungal effect on C. albicans and an antibacterial effect on S. mutans. However, the inhibitory and lethal effects against bacterial and fungal strains were lower than those of nystatin and chlorhexidine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Rosemary is one of the most useful medicinal plants among different categories of plants due to its many medicinal properties. Nanoparticles as one of the non-bio-stresses by using their electrochemical properties cause interference in the biosynthetic pathway of compounds in plants. This research was conducted in the form of a completely random basic design with three replications in the agricultural greenhouses of Zanjan University in 2017-2018. Also, gold nanoparticles were produced by the chemical reduction method in the laboratory of University of Zabol, and then their effect on the increase or decrease of compounds in rosemary plant oil was investigated in two time intervals of harvesting: 24 hours, 48 hours, and the control group. Materials and Methods: Rosemary plant cuttings with lengths of 10-12 cm and a diameter of half a centimeter were rooted in small containers containing light, washed soil, and ionolite, and permitted at night temperatures of 10-17 degrees and 21-23 degrees during the day. Then the rooted cuttings were transferred to 5 -liter pots containing a combination of fertile agricultural soil and sand. The Chemical reduction method (sodium citrate) was used to extract nanoparticles (Leopold and Lendl, 2003). The gold nanoparticle mixture that had changed color (blue) was subjected to the absorption spectrum of the spectrophotometric device, and the results obtained from the output of the device were checked based on which the maximum absorption rate of the gold nanoparticle with a diameter of 13 nm is equal to the wavelength of 520 nm and for the gold nanoparticle with a diameter of 52 nm is equal to 533 nm. The samples were sent to Beam Gostar Taban (2016-2021) after extraction by the chemical reduction method for diffraction electron microscopy (SEM) investigations and the authenticity of the presence of gold nanoparticles in the obtained samples. The gold nanoparticle treatment with a concentration of 30 ppm was sprayed on the plant in two different time periods (24 hours and 48 hours) and in the control group (without any treatment group) when the cuttings were fully established in terms of rooting and leafing. After that, their aerial parts were harvested at specified intervals and dried at room temperature for mass spectrometer (GC-MS) analysis. About 400 microliters of effective substance were spectrometered by the device (N Agilent 6890 Agilent technology USA), which was equipped with an ion trap system. The leaf sample of the plant, which was dehydrated at room temperature, was placed in the Cloninger device on a heater for 3 hours at a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius. A Water solvent was used in this research. Results and Discussion: In this study, gold nanoparticles were extracted based on the chemical reduction method, and the synthesis of gold nanoparticles was confirmed by electron microscope diffraction (SEM) and spectrophotometric analyses. The results obtained in this study showed significant changes in the compounds obtained by mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in rosemary oil, each of which has unique medicinal properties. Changes in secondary metabolites increase the plant's antioxidant defenses, which can be important in adapting to stresses._Verbonone is an effective compound in rosemary oil that, in this study, had a significant increase under the treatment of gold nanoparticles. Conclusion: In general, investigations conducted on the expression of oily compounds in rosemary showed that gold nanoparticle treatment did not have a significant effect on all the compounds in rosemary oil, but it was able to significantly increase a number of important compounds. The composition of verbena, which has an anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial role, showed a significant increase in the oily compounds of the rosemary plant. Considering the changes in the important oil compounds of the rosemary plant, it may be possible to induce the maximum production of these compounds and mass production of nanoparticles in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Preventing Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) is an important strategy to increase the quality of provided care for patients under mechanical ventilation. Rose water is the main product of Rosa damascena which is a popular medicinal plant and has been widely used in alternative medicine. It has antibacterial activity against gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria which can potentially cause VAP. Materials and Methods: This study was a randomized, controlled, single-center trial. 88 patients in a 21-bed surgical Intensive Care Unit (ICU) who were under mechanical ventilation met the inclusion criteria, and 80 patients fulfilled the study. Based on receiving either rose water and chlorhexidine solution or chlorhexidine solution alone, the patients were divided into two groups of control and intervention. The incidence of VAP up to 14 days was the primary outcome. Duration of mechanical ventilation, the ICU length of stay, and mortality in ICU were the secondary outcomes. Results: There was no significant difference in demographic data, the incidence of VAP, the incidence of late-onset VAP, mechanical ventilation days, length of the ICU stay, and mortality between the two groups. However, the incidence of early-onset VAP in the intervention group was significantly lower than in the control group (p= 0.021). Conclusion: Rose water mouthwash significantly reduced the risk of earlyonset VAP without any effect on late-onset VAP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aloe vera is used for its large variety of biological activities such as wound healing, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, hypoglycemic, immunomodulatory, gastroprotective, and anti-cancer. Although the beneficial effects of Aloe vera on wound healing have been proven, little is known about its effects at the cellular level. In this study, we evaluated the angiogenic and migrative effects of Aloe vera gel on fibroblasts and endothelial cells. Fibroblasts and endothelial cells were cultured in monolayer conditions with low glucose DMEM with 10% serum and 1% penicillin-streptomycin. Fresh and mature leaves of Aloe vera were used for gel preparation. Cell proliferation and morphology were studied by an inverted microscope. The migration of fibroblasts was assessed by scratch assay. MTT assay was performed for cell viability assessment, and real-time RT-PCR was used for evaluation of PECAM-1 , integrin α1 and β1 transcription. After two days, the protein level of PECAM-1 was detected by flow cytometry. Our results showed that Aloe vera has a higher proliferative effect on fibroblasts in comparison with endothelial cells. Aloe vera also induced the migration of fibroblasts. The viability of both types of cells was similar to control ones. Integrin α 1, β 1 and PECAM-1 gene expression increased significantly (P <0.005) in Aloe vera treated fibroblasts and endothelial cells in comparison with the control groups. However, the expression of these genes was significantly higher in fibroblasts in comparison with endothelial cells. Protein levels of PECAM-1 showed no change in both cell types upon Aloe vera treatment. Aloe vera gel induced angiogenic and cell adhesion properties in fibroblasts more than endothelial cells. Further investigations are needed to show the main role of fibroblasts rather than endothelial cells in wound healing by Aloe vera administration.