<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Pomegranate is known as a functional food which has multiple health-promoting activities. It has been assessed for patients with metabolic syndrome. Specifically, an antidiabetic activity of its juice and plausible mechanisms for its action have been shown in multitudinous studies. The aim of this study was assessing the effects of complementary treatment with pomegranate seed powder (PSP) oral supplementation on patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). <b><i>Methods:</i></b> Sixty patients were treated for 8 weeks by 5 g PSP or placebo, twice daily. Fasting blood glucose (FBG), glycated hemoglobin (HbA_1c), total cholesterol, and triglyceride (TG) were recorded as the outcome measures at the beginning and after the intervention. The findings were analyzed using the independent <i>t</i> test and Mann-Whitney U test. <b><i>Results:</i></b> After 8 weeks, the mean differences of FBG, HbA_1c, cholesterol, and TG were significantly decreased in the PSP group when compared with the placebo group (<i>p</i> value &#x3c;0.05). In addition, post-intervention values of FBG and HbA_1c were significantly lower in patients treated with PSP compared to the placebo group (<i>p</i> values = 0.02 and 0.01, respectively). However, the latter comparison regarding cholesterol and TG showed no significant differences (<i>p</i> values = 0.51 and 0.26, respectively). <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> It seems that complementary treatment with PSP may have beneficial effects on FBG and HbA_1c of patients with T2DM. However, its effect on TG and cholesterol was equivocal.

Background: Gastrointestinal carcinoma comprises 5% of all pediatric cancer in children. Given that the possible and beneficial effect of the Jaft extract in the treatment of gastric cancer is not known and there is no comprehensive study in this regard, this study aimed to assess the effect of Jaft extract on gastric cancer cell lines. Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, oak fruit was collected from the mountains of Lorestan province. A gastric cancer (AGS) cell line was obtained from the Institute Pasteur cell bank and was cultured. After the preparation of the ethanolic extract of Jaft, the cell viability of the gastric cancer cells treated with Jaft extract was investigated by MTT assay. Quantitative Reverse Transcription PCR was used for assessing the expression of BAX, and BCL2 genes. Results: The half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) value of Jaft extract was 162 µg/ml. The BAX gene expression was different between the case and control groups. In this regard, the expression of the BAX gene was increased in the concentration of 162 (P<0.01) and 250 µg/ml (P<0.001) of Jaft extract compared to the control group. The BCL2 expression was different between the two groups (P<0.05). In this regard, the expression of the BCL2 gene was decreased in the concentration of 162 and 250 µg/ml of Jaft extract compared to the control group. Conclusion: It was found that Jaft extract increased the apoptosis of gastric cancer cells; therefore, it seems that the hydroalchoholic extract of Jaft is an appropriate anticancer medication.