Carnosine (beta-alanyl-L-histidine) is an endogenous dipeptide found in various cells at millimolar concentration with its specific function(s) largely unknown. Our interests in therapeutic peptides led to the discovery that carnosine dramatically increases contractility when perfused into isolated rat hearts. Carnosine's effects are not mediated by histaminic or beta-adrenergic receptors or by...

Resveratrol, trans-3, 5, 4’-trihydroxy stilbene is a naturally occurring phytoalexin present in many different types of nutrients which we consume on daily basis. Resveratrol was first isolated from dried roots of Polygonum cuspidatum, as the principal active ingredient. Polygonum cuspidatum and its extract have been used in Japanese and Chinese traditional medicine for treatment of various ski...

CHAPTER 8 ADDITIONAL MEDICINAL PROPERTIES Synopsis Extracts from many medicinal mushrooms have long been used for a wide range of ailments in traditional Chinese medicine. Modern scientific and medical studies are increasingly supporting many of these health claims. The main areas of medical studies include blood pressurelowering, cholesterol lowering, liver protective, antifibrotic, anti-infla...

The intravenous administration of griseofulvin in doses of 3.0 mg/kg to 32 anesthetized open-chest dogs produced marked increments (43%) in isometric systolic force measured by a strain gauge. These changes were accompanied by an increase (22%) in heart rate and a decrease (25%) in blood pressure. The effect was unaltered by clamping the blood supply to and from the adrenal glands or by previou...

Insulin increased the heart rates of seven diabetics with normal cardiovascular reflexes. This effect, which was not due to hypoglycaemia, was greater in the upright than in the supine position and was produced by as little as one unit given intravenously. This increase in heart rate may be a compensatory response to maintain cardiac output.

Background: Saffron (Crocus satious L.) provides a variety of promising preventive and therapeutic effects with non-considerable side effects. Objective: Based on our knowledge, this is the first study that simultaneously has reviewed the effect of saffron extract and its constituents on the factors associated with neuropsychological, cardiovascular, and gastrointestinal tract diseases. ...

Androgens are the male sex hormones responsible for development of the male reproductive system. Testosterone is the main androgen, however, other circulating androgens also exist; these are dehydroepiandrosterone, androstenedione and androstenediol. In some tissues, testosterone can be converted to dihydrotestosterone by action of 5┙-reductase. Testosterone is also found in females, but at muc...

Plants of the Cannabis species, commonly known as marijuana, contain numerous psychoactive components, including the primary psychoactive compound D-9-tetrahyrdocannabinol (THC). The World Health Organization (WHO) describes cannabis as the most widely used, cultivated, and trafficked illicit drug in the world, with an estimated 147 million people using the drug annually. Consistent with worldw...

psychological problems play a critical role in development of cardiovascular disease. several mechanisms were suggested to explain the association and mechanism of this effect, recently. knowledge of the mechanisms mediating the association between psychological status and heart disease could help in developing treatments. the effects of mind and mood on the cardiovascular system can be due to ...