Carvacrol is the major compound of essential oils of many plants, ethnomedically used for centuries but there were no detailed investigations on its action on the cardiovascular system. The aim of our study was to investigate the role of carvacrol on the cardiovascular functions of anesthetized rats and in vitro of isolated rat aorta. Carvacrol (100 microg/kg, I. P.) decreased heart rate, mean arterial pressure and systolic and diastolic blood pressures of the anesthetized rats whereas there were no effects at 1, 10 and 20 microg/kg. Carvacrol was observed to exhibit hypotension and to inhibit N((omega))-nitro- L-arginine methyl ester ( L-NAME)-induced hypertension. The lack of inhibitory action of carvacrol (10 (-4) M) on the CaCl (2)- and phenylephrine-induced contractions of isolated rat aorta showed that neither adrenergic receptors nor voltage-dependent vascular L-type calcium channels were involved. But, based on previous investigations, the involvement of cardiac L-type calcium channel blocking actions are suggested for the hypotensive actions of carvacrol was assumed.

The purpose was to evaluate the use of mouse T15 fibroblast cell cultures for the investigation of wound-healing activity. In order to investigate their mechanisms of action, the effects of drugs with wound-healing activities were compared by using morphometric analyses by microscopy after cell staining. A number of parameters were used to evaluate the effects of titrated extracts from Centella asiatica and dexpanthenol (drugs that have been used in medical practice for their wound-healing activities) on cultured mouse T15 fibroblasts. These parameters were: the total number of cells; the number of T15 cells in mitosis; the percentages of fusiform, polygonal, round and vacuole-containing cells; and the number of intracellular collagen granules. The results indicate that these two drugs exhibit wound-healing activities by activating fibroblast cells, and have cytoprotective effects, although their mechanisms of action on mouse T15 fibroblasts were different. On the basis of our findings, mouse T15 fibroblast cell cultures seem to be useful for the pharmacological screening of compounds with wound-healing activity.

This paper identifies a hemorrhagic syndrome-like disease in calves with bovine viral diarrhea and mucosal disease complex in Turkey.