Hookworms are parasitic nematodes that reside in the intestines of their host, where they feed on host blood. The large number of infected individuals and the long survival time inside the host makes it interesting to study the immunomodulatory activities of the hookworms. The excretory/secretory (ES) products are suspected to be responsible for these effects. One aim of this project was to fractionate ...

For many drugs the vaginal route of administration is favorable, particularly for local therapy of specific gynecological diseases such as vaginal infections. A large variety of pharmaceutical preparations have been developed for vaginal delivery, nevertheless, the efficiency of currently available dosage forms is often limited by their poor retention time at the vaginal site. Physiological changes ...

Background - Gestational age (GA) and associated level of gastrointestinal tract maturation are major factors driving the initial gut microbiota composition in preterm infants. Besides, compared to term infants, premature infants often receive antibiotics to treat infections and probiotics to restore optimal gut microbiota. How GA, antibiotics, and probiotics modulate the microbiota’s core ...

<p><i>Objective</i>: To assess recovery of grip strength during the first year post-stroke.</p> <p><i>Design</i>: Exploratory study on a subsample of patients participating in the Norwegian Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy trial.</p> <p><i>Subjects</i>: Eleven patients (mean age 59.1 years; 3 women) with mild to moderate stroke were recruited 7–29 days post-stroke.</p> <p><i>Methods</i>: ...

Bendamustin is an alkylating anticancer agent which is currently in routine use for the treatment of different types of cancer. The drug is very unstable in serum due to hydrolysis; the half life of the first part of the serum elimination curve is about 6-10 minutes. The rapid degradation of the drug in serum impairs its cytostatic action within a short period of time, and frequent application of ...

Green tea catechins are well known for their antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. In this connection, catechins are thought to be potential candidates in prevention and treatment of diseases caused by oxidative damage. In addition, catechins have been shown to be effective in the treatment of genital warts. However, they exhibit low bioavailability and poor solubility, which limits their ...

Neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (NAIT) is most commonly caused by destruction of foetal platelets by maternal antibodies reactive to human platelet antigen (HPA)-1a. The activation of antigen-primed B cells to differentiate to antibody-secreting plasma cells usually requires help from CD4 T cells. The strong association between anti-HPA-1a-production and the MHC allele HLA-DRB3*0101 supports ...

The brain as a drug target site remains a pharmaceutical challenge in spite of numerous efforts to enhance drug delivery to the brain. Nasal drug administration has gained interest among researchers, especially in the last decade, as it provides direct drug access into the brain. However, the nasal mucus and the surrounding environment often limit the use of nose as the administration site. Drug ...

Purine metabolism is essential for all known living creatures, including humans in whom elevated serum concentration of purine break-down product uric acid (UA) is probably an independent risk factor for mortality, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular events. An automated multiplex assay that measures several purine metabolites could therefore prove useful in many areas of medical, veterinary and ...

Newly discovered compounds through bioprospecting are screened for cytotoxicity, and many of them are found to be highly toxic. Because they are often not specifically toxic only against cancer cells, they are not further studied. These new compounds could be of further interest by temporarily masking a functional group which regulate the anticancer activity of a cytotoxic compound. This means that ...