Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0013395 (dyspepsia)
 4,879 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The drug sildenafil (Viagra, Pfizer) and, more recently, tadalafil (Cialis, Lilly-Icos) and vardenafil (Levitra, Bayer), has drawn public attention to aphrodisiacs. The search for such substances dates back millennia. Adverse effects associated with these drugs include hypotension, tachycardia, headache, flushing, blurred vision, dyspepsia, and musculoskeletal pain. Although sildenafil has been marketed for erection of the penis, recent attention has been paid to its application for women, including enhancement of success of in vitro fertilization but also better sexual responses (increased desire, satisfaction, and orgasm) in cases of sexual disorders. Today, there is a debate on internet forums about the potential properties of sildenafil to enhance women's sexual pleasure. This laboratory was asked to analyze a 12-cm length of light brown hair submitted by a British police force following an allegation that a young female had been subjected to sexual assaults over a two-year period. The female was 15-17 years of age at the time. The alleged perpetrator was her stepfather, and there was some suspicion that drugs may have been administered to facilitate the attacks. After decontamination and segmentation (6 x 2-cm section), the specimen was analyzed by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry after alkaline (pH 9.5) extraction using dichloromethane/ isopropanol/n-heptane (25:10:65, v/v/v). The limit of quantitation was 5 pg/mg. The proximal segment tested positive for sildenafil at 38 pg/mg, and all others proved negative. This was in accord with the victim's claim. In the absence of any controlled studies, it was impossible to put any quantitative interpretation on the measured concentration.
 ...
PMID:Hair analysis to demonstrate administration of sildenafil to a woman in a case of drug-facilitated sexual assault. 1987 68

Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. (A. oxyphylla), as a kind of medicine which also be used as food, is widely used in East Asian for the treatment of dyspepsia, diarrhea, abdominal pain and deficiency cold of spleen and stomach. This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of ethanol extract (EE) and its dichloromethane fraction (DM) of A. oxyphylla, which are rich in phenolic compounds, against CCl4-induced hepatic injury in vitro and in vivo. EE, DM and silymarin ameliorated CCl4-induced decrease of cell viability and increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in HepG2 cells. The CCl4-induced changes of glutathione (GSH) and methane dicarboxylic aldehyde (MDA) levels, and the decrease of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities were all restored with the pretreatment of EE, DM and silymarin. The results in liver injury model in rats showed that EE, DM and silymarin could significant decrease the levels of serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and total bilirubin than the model group. Liver histopathology revealed that EE and DM attenuated the incidence of liver lesions triggered by CCl4 intoxication. They also effectively relieved CCl4-induced oxidative damage. Western blot analysis indicated NF-E2-related factor (Nrf2) pathway played an critical role in the protection of EE and DM against CCl4-induced oxidative stress. In conclusion, the extracts from A. oxyphylla might be used as hepatoprotective agents.
 ...
PMID:Ethanol extract and its dichloromethane fraction of Alpinia oxyphylla Miquel exhibited hepatoprotective effects against CCl4-induced oxidative damage in vitro and in vivo with the involvement of Nrf2. 2850 Oct 8