Recently, it has been reported that curcumin, which is known as a potent antioxidant, acts as a nonstressful and non-cytotoxic inducer of the cytoprotective heme oxygenase (HO)-1. In this study, naturally occurring curcuminoids, such as pure curcumin, demethoxycurcumin (DMC) and bis-demethoxycurcumin (BDMC), were compared for their potential ability to modulate HO-1 expression and cytoprotective activity in human endothelial cells. All three curcuminoids could induce HO-1 expression and HO activity with differential levels. The rank order of HO activity was curcumin, DMC and BDMC. In comparison with endothelial protection against H2O2-induced cellular injury, cytoprotective capacity was found to be highest with curcumin, followed by DMC and BDMC. Interestingly, cytoprotective effects afforded by curcuminoids were considerably associated with their abilities to enhance HO activity. Considering that the main difference among the three curcuminoids is the number of methoxy groups (none for BDMC, one for DMC, and two for curcumin), the presence of methoxy groups in the ortho position on the aromatic ring was suggested to be essential to enhance HO-1 expression and cytoprotection in human endothelial cells. Our results may be useful in designing more efficacious HO-1 inducers which could be considered as promising pharmacological agents in the development of therapeutic approaches for the prevention or treatment of endothelial diseases caused by oxidative damages.

In vitro antistaphylococcal activities of panduratin A, a natural chalcone compound isolated from Kaempferia pandurata Roxb, were compared to those of commonly used antimicrobials against clinical staphylococcal isolates. Panduratin A had a MIC at which 90% of bacteria were inhibited of 1 g/ml for clinical staphylococcal isolates and generally was more potent than commonly used antimicrobials.

ObjectiveThere are complications in stand-alone cage assisted anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF), such as cage subsidence and kyphosis. Here we report our clinical result on ACDF, comparing with stand-alone cages and with cervical plate system for degenerative cervical spine diseases.MethodsPatients with degenerative cervical disease who were diagnosed and treated in Konyang University Hospital between January 2004 and December 2014 were included in this study. Patients who had operation in single level ACDF were selected. Patients scored the degree of pain using visual analog scale before and after the surgery. Subsidence was defined as ≥3-mm decrease of the segmental height, and cervical kyphosis was defined as progression of ≥5° at 12 months after postoperative follow-up compared to that measured at the immediate postoperative period.ResultsA total of 81 patients were enrolled for this study. Forty-five patients were included in a cervical plate group and the others were in stand-alone cage group. There was no statistical difference in pain score between the 2 groups. Segmental subsidence was observed in 7 patients (15.6%) in plate-assisted cervical fusion group, and 13 patients (36.1%) in stand-alone cage group. Segmental kyphosis was observed in 4 patients (8.9%) in plate-assisted cervical fusion group, and 10 patients (27.8%) in stand-alone cage group. There was statistical difference between the 2 groups.ConclusionThere was no difference in pain between 2 groups. But stand-alone case group showed higher incidence rate than plate-assisted cervical fusion group in segmental subsidence and cervical kyphosis. When designing cervical fusion, more attention should be given selecting the surgical technique.

Enterococci, Enterococcus faecalis, and E. faecium, are the most common Gram-positive cocci in the intestinal tract and have been documented to cause infection of the urinary tract and other sites of humans. [1][2][3][4][5] Increased antimicrobial resistance in enterococci has become a problem in recent years. 6,7) Vancomycin is often used as a drug of last resort in treatment of antibiotic-resistant, Gram-positive bacterial infections caused by organisms such as multiresistant enterococci, but the treatment is frequently unsuccessful. 8) Thus, the identification of novel agents effective in inhibiting the growth of these strains has gained renewed urgency. 9) Further, an interest in plants with antimicrobial properties has been revived as a consequence of the current problems associated with the use of antibiotics. 10,11) Panduratin A, a natural chalcone compound isolated from the rhizomes of fingerroot (Boesenbergia rotunda (L.) MANSF, A.), has been reported to posses antibacterial activity against Prevotella intermedia, P. loescheii, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Propionibacterium acnes, and Streptococcus mutans, as well as antibiofilm activity against multispecies oral biofilms, in vitro. [12][13][14][15] Panduratin A has also been reported to have strong antimicrobial activity against clinical Staphylococcus strains.16) However, the antimicrobial activity of panduratin A against other pathogenic bacteria, such as enterococci, has not been investigated. In this study, we compared the in vitro activity of panduratin A against clinical enterococci isolates with those of common antimicrobial agents, including ampicillin, daptomycin, gentamycin, erythromycin, levofloxacin, linezolid, tetracycline, and vancomycin. MATERIALS AND METHODSMicroorganisms A reference strain of E. faecalis (ATCC 29212), was obtained from American Type Culture Collection (Rockville, MD, U.S.A.). Twenty-three isolates of clinical enterococci consisting 10 and 13 isolates of E. faecalis and E. faecium, respectively, were obtained from The Research Institute of Bacterial Resistance, College of Medicine, Yonsei University, Korea. The strains were isolated from blood, genital secretions, pus, or sputum of patients in 2008. The species were identified by conventional methods or by using the Vitek system (bioMerieux SA, Marcy l'Etoile, France), according to the manufacturer's instructions.Panduratin A and Commercial Antibacterial Agent Preparation Panduratin A (Fig. 1) Panduratin A, a natural chalcone compound isolated from the rhizome of fingerroot (Boesenbergia rotunda (L.) MANSF. A). The antibacterial activity of panduratin A against clinical enterococci isolates was compared in terms of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) to those of commonly used antimicrobials, according to the CLSI guidelines. Time-kill curves were constructed to assess the concentration between MIC and bactericidal activity of panduratin A at concentrations ranging from 0؋ MIC to 4؋ MIC. The activity of panduratin A against b...