Nutraceutical applications of garlic and the intervention of biotechnology

Garlic (Allium sativum L.) is an important and widely cultivated plant with both culinary and medicinal uses stemming from its biological activities, which include antibiotic, anticancer, anti-thrombotic, and lipid-lowering cardiovascular effects. Though such medicinal use of garlic existed for centuries, there was little scientific support for its therapeutic and pharmacological properties. However, there has been a recent upsurge of research on garlic aiming to understand its exact mechanism of action in each case so that garlic and its products may have more judicious future applications. Since garlic is vegetatively propagated, its improvement for desired traits through conventional means is difficult. The intervention of biotechnological methods such as tissue culture and gene transfer protocols developed recently hold great promise for improving this crop. Due to new innovations in instrumentation and processing technologies coupled with more judicious experimental models, better products are foreseen in the market. The objective of this article was to review the recent developments made towards understanding the mechanism by which garlic imparts different therapeutic effects as well as to review what biotechnology can offer to improve this crop and its products.     

静脉注射免疫球蛋白对神经病理性疼痛治疗作用的研究进展

静脉注射免疫球蛋白具有多种免疫调节方面的功能,临床上常用于自身免疫性疾病的治疗。近年来,静脉注射免疫球蛋白也应用于许多神经系统疾病的治疗,因为部分神经系统疾病的发病机制与免疫调节相关。神经病理性疼痛是慢性顽固性的疼痛综合征,发病机制复杂,免疫调节也参与神经病理性疼痛的发生。目前发现静脉注射免疫球蛋白可以明显减轻神经病理性疼痛患者的疼痛,给药后无严重不良反应的发生,而且在镇痛的同时可以促进伤口的愈合,提高患者的生活质量。其作用机制可能是免疫球蛋白可以阻断自身抗体与Fc受体结合或中和自身抗体,减轻补体介导的组织损伤作用;还可以通过降低炎性细胞因子表达减轻患者的疼痛。