PubMed · 8172443
The source did not provide an abstract. Follow the original record for more information.
Explore connections, maps & timelines
D J Lerner, S B Hulley. 1994-06-01. Does eating garlic lower cholesterol?. https://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-120-11-199406010-00011
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.
KEEP EXPLORING
Valproic acid (2-propyl-pentanoic acid, VPA) is well established as a first-line and widely used antiepileptic agent. VPA is well tolerated in most patients and has an impressive safety profile. VPA induced hepatotoxicity is rare, but often there is fatal complication of this drug and it is more frequent in children under 2 years of age and in those taking multiple drugs. Several findings showed that oxidative stress induced by reactive oxygen species (ROS) over production and/or compromised antioxidant capacity play an important role in the development of hepatotoxicity in VPA treated patients. Reduced glutathione (GSH) and its related enzymes are important cellular defense against oxidative stress in which VPA induced oxidative stress impairs their function in hepatocytes. Consequently any mechanism which removes ROS or prevents hepatic GSH depletion or induce activation and production of GSH dependent enzymes may provide protection for hepatotoxicity in VPA-treated patient. As garlic organosulfur compounds enhance cellular antioxidant activity by free radical scavenging and augmentation of endogenous antioxidants via prevention of GSH depletion and alteration of GSH dependent enzymes activity and/or their gene expression, we propose the hypothesis that garlic organosulfur compounds can prevent valproic acid hepatotoxicity.
Advance metastasized cancers are generally incurable; hence an effort to prolong the process of carcinogenesis through chemoprevention has emerged consistent with this notion. In recent years, a considerable attention has been placed to identify naturally occurring chemopreventive substances capable of inhibiting, retarding or reversing the process of carcinogenesis. A number of phenolic substances, particularly those present in dietary and medicinal plants, have been shown to possess substantial anticarcinogenic and antimutagenic activities. Epidemiological observations and laboratory studies, both in cell culture and animal models have indicated anticarcinogenic potential of garlic and its constituents, which has been traditionally used for varied human ailments around the world. Chemical analysis has indicated that protective effects of garlic appear to be related to the presence of organosulfur compounds mainly allyl derivatives. Several mechanisms have been presented to explain cancer chemopreventive effects of garlic-derived products. These include modulation in activity of several metabolizing enzymes that activate and detoxify carcinogens and inhibit DNA adduct formation, antioxidative and free radicals scavenging properties and regulation of cell proliferation, apoptosis and immune responses. Recent data show that garlic-derived products modulate cell-signaling pathways in a fashion that controls the unwanted proliferation of cells thereby imparting strong cancer chemopreventive as well as cancer therapeutic effects. This review discusses mechanistic basis of cancer chemopreventive effects of garlic-derived products, their implication in cancer management and ways and means to take these agents from bench to real life situations.
The proteinaceous content of garlic (Allium sativum) was characterised according to its amino acid composition by using a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analytical procedure. The procedure was tested on fresh and aged garlic samples as well as on reference gilding specimens prepared according to old recipes. The proteinaceous pattern showed a characteristic distribution of amino acids with glutamic acid being the major component. The average amino acidic composition was: glutamic acid (Glu; 29%), aspartic acid (Asp; 17%), serine (Ser; 11%), alanine, glycine, valine, leucine, lysine and phenylalanine (Ala, Gly, Val, Leu, Lys and Phe; 5-6%), isoleucine, proline and tyrosine (Ile, Pro and Tyr; 2-3%), methionine and hydroxyproline (Met and Hyp; 0.5%). In order to distinguish this material from animal glue and egg, which are the other proteinaceous media commonly used in gilding techniques, a database of amino acid percentages of the three proteins was built up and submitted to principal component analysis. Three separate clusters were obtained, allowing the protein identification. The application of the procedure on several gilding samples from Italian wall and easel paintings (13th-17th century) permitted to evidence the use of garlic as a gluing agent.