Search

Editors' selections from the current scientific literature.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Editors' selections from the current scientific literature.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

Highlights from the Science family of journals.

A preliminary pharmacological screening of the methanolic extract of Picralima nitida fruit was carried out. The extract showed potent and dose-dependent anti-inflammatory, antipyretic and anti-malarial activities. Given intraperitoneally, it inhibited carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema with IC50 of 102mg/kg, and with the highest dose tested (300mg/kg) producing 72.2% inhibition. On the LPS-induced pyrexia in rabbits, 50mg/kg of the extract produced a mean percentage antipyrexia of (38.7%) compared with (29.0%) by 200mg/kg of aspirin. In a 4-day in vivo schizontocidal test in mice infected with P. berghei berghei, up to 300mg/kg daily for 4 days was ineffective in preventing the development of parasitaemia or the consequent mortality. However, marked inhibitory activity was obtained on multi-drug resistant human P. falciparium parasites cultured in in vitro. The dose causing 50% inhibition of parasite growth was 1.75 micrograms/ml compared with (0.14 microgram/ml for chloroquine. The results confirm the medicinal value of this plant and thus justify its use by natives of W. Africa.

Thirty-two patients with chronic debilitating agoraphobia and panic attacks participated in a comparative study of the triazolobenzodiazepine alprazolam and the anti-inflammatory agent ibuprofen. After a 2-week placebo washout period, patients were randomly assigned to 8 weeks of treatment with alprazolam (2 to 6 mg/day) or ibuprofen (0.8 to 2.4 g/day). Medication was identically packaged and patients were blind to the treatment condition, but investigators were aware of which medication was dispensed. Alprazolam recipients (mean daily dose: 5.4 mg) improved markedly with respect to physician and patient global rating of disease severity, frequency and severity of panic attacks, and phobic anxiety target symptoms on the 90-Item Hopkins Symptom Check List. Ibuprofen recipients (mean daily dose: 2.13 g) experienced significantly less clinical improvement than patients on alprazolam. After 8 weeks of treatment, ibuprofen patients were crossed over to alprazolam, while the original alprazolam group continued on that drug. The daily dosage ceiling was increased to 10 mg. In the ensuing 4 weeks (mean daily alprazolam dose: 6.3 mg), all patients achieved comparably marked clinical improvement relative to baseline. Pretreatment plasma concentrations of platelet factor 4 and beta-thromboglobulin--two measures of platelet turnover and release--were significantly elevated in patients relative to normal controls. The elevated platelet factor 4 and beta-thromboglobulin normalized during treatment with both drugs. Alprazolam appears to produce rapid and specific clinical improvement in patients with severe agoraphobia and panic attacks and deserves further evaluation under double-blind conditions.