on behalf of the ANBP2 Echo Study Committee .Background: Hypertension leads to cardiac structural and functional changes, commonly assessed by echocardiography. It is not clear which echocardiographic parameters are most predictive of future cardiovascular events among elderly treated hypertensive patients over short or long term.Objectives: To assess the predictive performance of echocardiographic findings for having cardiovascular outcomes in elderly hypertensive patients. Methods:We used echocardiographic data from the LVH sub-study of the Second Australian National Blood Pressure trial. Participants aged ≥65-yrs were followed for a median of 4.1 years (short-term) and an additional median 6.9 years (longterm) for any cardiovascular events. Echocardiograms were performed at baseline to estimate left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), LV systolic and diastolic dysfunction, LV wall thickness and relative wall thickness. LV mass was calculated according to the American Society of Echocardiography criteria and LVH was defined based on LV mass indexed according to body surface area (male >115 g/m 2 , female >95 g/m 2 ). Cox-regression proportional hazard models were used to understand the relationship between echocardiographic findings and cardiovascular events. 4 105.0±8.3 157.6±10.6 109.4±8.1 α 119.7±9.7 α 123.9±14.5 α 138.3±9.2 Data are expressed as mean ± SD. NC: normal control, L-NAME: L-name only,CAP: L-name + captopril (100mg/kg/day), TQ10: L-name + thymoquinone 10mg/kg, TQ5:L-name+thymoquinone 5mg/kg, TQ2.5:L-name + thymoquinone 2.5mg/kg. α significantly lower compared to L-NAME group at (P< 0.01) using one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey test.

A BSTRACT Introduction: Little is known whether the duration of opioid use influences the concentrations of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Objectives: This study examined the plasma concentration of pro-inflammatory cytokine, interleukin 6 (IL-6), and anti-inflammatory cytokine, interleukin 10 (IL-10), in short-, and long-term opioid users with noncancer pain. Materials and Methods: Adult patients with opioid therapy for noncancer pain were recruited from pain clinics at two tertiary hospital settings in Malaysia between February 2016 and March 2017. They were stratified into short- or long-term users based on opioid prescriptions ≥ 90 days per year. A 10mL blood sample was taken for the analysis of plasma concentrations of IL-6 and IL-10 and were quantified using a highly sensitive multiplex assay. Results: Of 38 patients recruited, 24% ( n = 9/38) and 76% ( n = 29/38) were respectively short- and long-term opioid users. Short-term use of opioid was associated with higher levels of IL-6 (mean ± SD, 173.9 ± 13.7 pg/mL) and IL-10 (50 ± 5.8 pg/mL), whereas long-term use of opioids was associated with lower levels (no significant difference) of both cytokines IL6 (125 ± 16.1 pg/mL) and IL10 (41.3 ± 6.7 pg/mL). There was strong correlation between IL-6 and IL-10 within the same group ( r ² = 0.72, P < 0.05) and ( r ² = 0.76, P < 0.05) for short- and long-term users, respectively. Conclusion: The duration of opioid use may modulate the level of pro-inflammatory cytokines in which it was higher in short-term use and lower in long-term use, but the effect of pain relief was similar as both cytokines were well correlated.

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Objective: The objectives of the current study were to confirm the blood pressure lowering effect of thymoquinone (TQ) and to investigate its mechanism through muscarinic and β-adrenergic receptors.Methods: Mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) was recorded using the non-invasive blood pressure tail-cuff technique. A dose-response relationship was obtained after using 3 TQ doses (2.5, 5 and 10 mg/kg) intraperitoneally to 3 different groups (n =5) of adult rats under pentobarbital anesthesia. MAP was then measured for another 2 animal groups pretreated either with atropine (P-at) or propranolol (P-pro) followed by 10 mg/kg TQ.Results: TQ produced a significant dose-dependent blood pressure and heart rate lowering effect. TQ-induced MAP reduction was significantly less pronounced in P-at (12±2.8 mmHg) than non-pretreated group (29±3.2 mmHg) with P<0.01. Conversely, TQ-induced MAP reduction in P-pro (28±3.4 mmHg) did not demonstrate a significant difference from the non-pretreated group (29±3.2 mmHg) with P>0.05.Conclusion: This study confirms the dose-related hypotensive effect of TQ and provides an evidence for the traditional use of Nigella sativa for the treatment of hypertension. The mechanism of TQ-induced hypotension involves at least in part activation of vascular muscarinic receptors, but not β-adrenergic receptors.

Crataegus aronia is widely known for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and hypolipidemic properties, and it has traditionally been used to treat cardiovascular disorders. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of Crataegus aronia extract on the liver enzyme markers, blood glucose levels, lipid profiles, and kidney function biomarkers as well as hematological parameters in induced diabetic rats. Male Wistar rats were divided into seven groups: normal Control; Diabetic; and Diabetic animals treated with two doses of Crataegus aronia extract (5 and 10mg/kg) (DM + extract), Control treated with the extract ( 5 and 10mg/ kg) and induced diabetic treated with insulin. Streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats (50 mg/kg, ip)and normal were orally administrated with Crataegus aronia extract once a day for 4 weeks. At the end of the experiment, the biochemical and hematological parameters were measured in all groups. Also, the phytochemicals and antioxidant activity of the Crataegus aronia extract were evaluated. According to findings, the total phenols, total flavonoid, and flavonol contents were 538.3 mg Galic acid equivalent /g extract, 149.3 mg Rutin equivalent / g extract, and 79.3 mg Rutin equivalent / g extract), respectively. The antioxidant activity according to 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) IC 50 and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays were 28.02 µg/ml and in the range of 0.273 -0.960 µmol Fe +2 /g dw, respectively. Crataegus aronia extract significantly (p <0.05) affects red blood cells, hemoglobin, hematocrit, white blood cells, lymphocytes, and platelets values. Also, Crataegus aronia had a significant (P < 0.05) effect on serum biochemical parameters, including glucose, total proteins, albumins, triglycerides, creatinine, bilirubin, and serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST). However, Crataegus aronia treatment had no significant effects (p < 0.05) on serum alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and cholesterol levels. Crataegus aronia exerts antioxidant activity and significantly improves the biochemical and hematological biomarkers in induced diabetic rats.