Biomedical subjects

Maor Lahav

Publications and source records attributed to Maor Lahav.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Allicin inhibits spontaneous and TNF-alpha induced secretion of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines from intestinal epithelial cells.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Allicin, the active substance of fresh crushed garlic has different biological activities and was implicated as an anti-inflammatory agent. Epithelial cells have an important role in intestinal inflammation. The aim of this study was to assess the immunomodulatory effect of allicin on intestinal epithelial cells. METHODS: The spontaneous and TNF-alpha-stimulated secretion of IL-1beta, IL-8, IP-10 and MIG from HT-29 and Caco-2 cells was tested with, or without pretreatment with allicin. Cytokine secretion was assessed using ELISA and expression of mRNA was determined by an RNA protection assay. RESULTS: Allicin markedly inhibited the spontaneous and TNF-alpha -induced secretion of IL-1beta, IL-8, IP-10 and MIG from the two different cell lines in a dose-dependent manner and suppressed the expression of IL-8 and IL-1beta mRNA levels. In addition, allicin suppressed the degradation of IkappaB. No effect on cell viability was noted. CONCLUSIONS: These observations indicate that allicin exerts an inhibitory immunomodulatory effect on intestinal epithelial cells and suggest that allicin may have the potential to attenuate intestinal inflammation.

Anti-Infective Agents↗

PubMed2003

Clinical and demographic characterization of Jewish Crohn's disease patients in Israel.

BACKGROUND: Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic transmural inflammatory disease of unknown etiology. Genetic background may influence the nature of disease. The Jewish population in Israel is composed of Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews, who differ in their genetic background. Previous studies have reported that the prevalence of CD in Sephardic Jews is lower than in Ashkenazi Jews; however, no information is available regarding disease characteristics in these patient populations. GOALS: To assess the demographic and clinical characteristics of CD in Israeli Jewish patients. STUDY: We studied 189 CD patients who were observed in our department. Demographic and clinical data were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Forty-eight percent of the patients had ileum-only disease. Fistulizing disease was more frequently seen in ileocolonic than in ileal ( p= 0.04) or colonic ( p= 0.01) disease, whereas strictures occurred more often in ileal than in colonic disease (22% and 3%, respectively, p= 0.007). No association was found between current smoking and disease severity. Sephardic patients more frequently had extraintestinal disease than did Ashkenazi patients (35% vs. 17%, respectively, = 0.019). CONCLUSION: Jewish Israeli patients show a predilection for ileum-only disease. Disease severity appears not to be influenced by smoking. These differences in disease behavior may be related to genetic factors.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Immunologic basis for diarrhea.

Diarrhea is a common sequela of deregulated immune pathways underlying the wide range of intestinal acute and chronic diseases. The ongoing investigation of novel immune components and susceptibility factors allows better understanding of these pathologic mechanisms and continues to advance therapeutic options.

Journal Article↗