Homeopathy. 2009 Jul; 98(3): 149-53Waisse-Priven S, Jurj G, Lima Thomaz LC, Tierno SA, Filho WL, Sos A, de Souza MFThis study sought to assess the effectiveness of individualized homeopathic treatment on dermatological complaints in a public outpatient clinic. METHODS: Children and adults spontaneously seeking for homeopathic treatment for dermatological complaints were prescribed single individualized remedies and followed up for a minimum of 3 months; assessment was clinical and recorded graphically. RESULTS: Forty-nine patients met the inclusion criteria. Outcomes were positive (59%); no effect (4%); drop-out (37%), from which 6% was due to homeopathic aggravation. No manifestations of suppression were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Outcome studies are useful to point out to the effectiveness of individualized homeopathic treatment in dermatological complaints. Outcomes suggest that actions focusing on pathological categories do not lead to homeopathic suppression.

Phytother Res. 2009 Aug 4; Wu W, Xu X, Dai Y, Xia LThe objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of the saponin fraction from Clematis chinensis Osbeck roots (SFC) on an osteoarthritis model in rats and to explore its underlying mechanisms. Osteoarthritis was induced by intraarticular injection of monosodium iodoacetate (MIA) into knee joints of rats, and SFC and diclofenac were orally administered once a day for 28 consecutive days. Joint swelling, macroscopic observation, histological assessment and proteoglycan (PG) degradation were examined. In vitro, cultured rabbit chondrocytes were stimulated with MIA and sodium nitroprusside (SNP), respectively. The effects of SFC on MIA- and SNP-induced chondrocyte injury were examined by MTT assay. It was shown that SFC (50, 100, 200 mg/kg) dose-dependently reduced cartilage injury and PG degradation induced by MIA. Diclofenac (4 mg/kg) only slightly alleviated cartilage injury and PG degradation. SFC also prevented SNP- or MIA-induced rabbit chondrocyte impairment. These results indicate that SFC is effective in ameliorating joint destruction and cartilage erosion in MIA-induced osteoarthritic in rats, and the mechanisms of action for protecting articular cartilage are through preventing extracellular matrix degradation and chondrocyte injury. Copyright (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Homeopathy. 2009 Jul; 98(3): 137-41Mousavi F, Mojaver YN, Asadzadeh M, Mirzazadeh MOBJECTIVE: The objectives of this study were to clinically determine the efficacy of individualised homeopathy in the treatment of minor recurrent aphthous ulceration (MiRAU). DESIGN & INTERVENTION: A randomized, single blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial of individualised homeopathy. One hundred patients with minor aphthous ulcer were treated with individualised homeopathic medicines or placebo and followed up for 6 days. Patients received two doses of individualised homeopathic medicines in the 6C potency as oral liquid at baseline and 12 h later. Pain intensity and ulcer size were recorded at baseline during and at the end of the trial (mornings of days 4 and 6). RESULT: All 100 patients completed treatment. Between group differences for pain intensity and ulcer size were statistically significant at day 4 and at day 6 (P

J Cell Mol Med. 2009 Jul 31; Xu X, Dai YIt was nearly one hundred years since heparin was discovered, but the role of this widely used anticoagulant is still remarkably thought-provoking now. During pathological processes such as atherosclerosis, inflammation, cancer and infection, phenomena of cell adhesion are ubiquitous and complicated. Heparin exerts anti-adhesion activity appearing as a common mechanism of its potential polypharmacology in those diseases. Furthermore, heparin can bind a variety of signaling molecules such growth factors, cell surface proteins of pathogens and most notably, cell adhesion molecules. These signaling molecules are involved in cell communication, acting as ligands, receptors, and second messengers. Considering that heparan sulfate glycosaminoglycan is increasingly recognized as a key mediator in many cellular processes, the structural similarity with heparan sulfate suggests that heparin is a multifunctional intervenor in cell communication.